Category: Sighting

WEST END:  38 Cormorant (13 nests now have young), 24 GC Grebe, 2 Egyptian Goose, pair of Mandarin, 11 Mallard, many young Grey Heron have now fledged, 8 pairs of Common Tern nesting on rafts, 2 Stock Dove.  WHILLET’S:  Pair of Reed Bunting, several White legged damselfy seen, also Large Red & Azure damselflies. 1M Broad bodied chaser dragonfly.

West End:- 2 Red Kites, 1 Hobby, 1 Lapwing, Pied Wagtail with fledged young, Mallard with one large duckling, 3 Swallow, 2 Treecreepers.
Whillet’s:- 3 White-legged Damselfly, 1 Emperor Dragonfly.

NORTH BANK: 1 Honey Buzzard over NW Ashdown area, 1 Red Kite, 6 Common Buzzzard, 1 Kestrel, 2 Raven, 1 Common Whitethroat, 5 BH Gull, 2 Swallow.   DAM END: 2 Swift, 2 Egyptian Geese, 11 Greylag, 12 Canada Geese.   WEST END: 8 pairs of Common Terns nesting on rafts.   WHILLET’S: transect count butterflies – 1 Brown Argus (new spcies for site, see photo), 1  Common Blue, 2 Small Copper, moths – 1 Mother Shipton, 1 Silver Y, 3 Burnet Companion. also a Beautiful Demoiselle damselfly was seen.

DAM END: 1 Honey Buzzard flyover, 1 Hobby, 16 Swift with House Martins & Swallows, 5 Common Sandpipers dotted around. WEST END: 20 Common Terns seen around Ternery area.

Whillet’s:-  1 Hobby flew over, 1 Buzzard, Yellowhammer heard (song coming from vineyard farmland), 1m Reed Bunting seen, plus Bullfinch, Reed Warbler, Garden Warbler, Chiffchaff & Blackcap all heard within meadows. 1 Small Copper butterfly.

Dam End:- 2 Common Sandpipers, 1 Swift, 2 Swallows, 1 Mute Swan.
North Bank:- 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 Coot.
West End:- 2 Lapwing, 1m Mandarin, 3 Buzzards.

Hobby hawking again this p.m. between the picnic site and the dam wall. 4 Mandarin flew out from North Bank.

WeBS Report
All reservoir:- 41 Great Crested Grebe, 48 Cormorant, 19 Grey Heron, 40 Mallard, 2 Coot, 2 Stock Dove, 5 Pied Wagtail, 2 Jay.
Dam End:- 1 Greylag, 5 Egyptian Geese, 1 Red Kite, 1 Kestrel, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 imm Lesser Black-backed Gull, 4 Swift, 4 Swallow, 9 House Martin, 1 Grey Wagtail, 2 Song Thrush, 1 Mistle Thrush, 1 Lesser Whitethroat heard near dam wall, 3 Whitethroat, 2 Garden Warbler, 3 Blackcap, 3 Chiffchaff, 2 Long-tailed Tit, 2 Treecreeper, 3+ Rook, 2 Raven, 4 Goldfinch, 1m Bullfinch, 2m+1f Yellowhammer, 1m Reed Bunting.
West End:- 1 Mute Swan, 1m+2f Mandarin plus a brood of 15 chicks seen with an adult female out on the water, pair of Tufted Duck, 2 Common Buzzard, An immature Peregrine flew around swooping for a few minutes causing panic among the 21 Common Terns seen, and 20+ Mallards on Pintail. Possibly 8 pairs of Common Terns look like they are taking nesting positions on the rafts with birds sitting. 2 Buzzard, 1 Moorhen, 1 Lapwing, 12 Herring Gull, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 1 Kingfisher seen carrying food, 1 Reed Warbler singing in front of hide
Whillet’s:- pair of Great Spotted Woodpecker nesting, 4 Reed Warbler plus 2m+1f Reed Bunting at reed bed.  Also noted were 3 Common Lizard, 2 Grass Snake, 3m+2f Orange Tip, 2 Green-veined white, 2 Peacock butterfly, 1 Speckled Wood, plus a Wood Carpet Moth & Red Twin-spot Carpet Moth and mating Bluebottle flies.  1 Beautiful Demoiselle, 1m Broad-bodied chaser dragonfly, 1 White-legged damselfly, 2 pairs of Large Red damselfly seen egg laying, 2 Azure damselfly.

North Bank:- 1 Nightingale singing near the picnic area late morning.

North Bank:- Afternoon visit to picnic area – 1 Hobby seen, the attraction for the hobby was probably the huge numbers of mayflies on the wing in this area, also Swift, 6+ Swallow and a House Martin.
DAM END wall:- 1 Grey Wagtail, 3 Pied Wagtail also a Beautiful Demoiselle.